Brown Advisory Inc. Decreases Stake in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

Brown Advisory Inc. reduced its stake in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) by 1.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,532,729 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 24,390 shares during the period. Brown Advisory Inc. owned about 0.59% of Waste Connections worth $262,986,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Manchester Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Private Trust Co. NA raised its position in Waste Connections by 153.3% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 152 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Waste Connections in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in Waste Connections during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Waste Connections by 59.7% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 190 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the period. 86.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Waste Connections Stock Up 0.0 %

Shares of WCN traded up $0.03 on Wednesday, reaching $198.41. The company's stock had a trading volume of 891,532 shares, compared to its average volume of 967,163. Waste Connections, Inc. has a twelve month low of $160.34 and a twelve month high of $201.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $51.26 billion, a PE ratio of 83.02, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $192.14 and a 200-day moving average of $185.70.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.07 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $2.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.22 billion. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 15.54% and a net margin of 6.92%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.04 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 EPS for the current year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.315 per share. This represents a $1.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.64%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 7th. Waste Connections's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.85%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on WCN shares. StockNews.com downgraded Waste Connections from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on Waste Connections from $225.00 to $210.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 30th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Waste Connections from $214.00 to $216.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $214.00 to $219.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Finally, William Blair began coverage on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. They set an "outperform" rating on the stock. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $208.21.

Waste Connections Company Profile

Waste Connections, Inc provides non-hazardous waste collection, transfer, disposal, and resource recovery services in the United States and Canada. It offers collection services to residential, commercial, municipal, industrial, and exploration and production (E&P) customers; landfill disposal services; and recycling services for various recyclable materials, including compost, cardboard, mixed paper, plastic containers, glass bottles, and ferrous and aluminum metals.